This invention relates to the removal of objects from a moving belt. Of particular interest are flat belts used for transporting raw material, especially mixtures in which both larger and smaller solids are present.
Prior to this invention a trough was formed in the belt by the use of idlers that were placed near the edges of the belt, with the outer end of each idler being disposed upwardly. With the idlers so positioned, the edges of the belt formed lips which prevented the material on the conveyor from falling off inadvertently. However, these lips hindered efforts to dislodge oversized objects from the moving belt. When devices were employed to deflect such objects sideways, for instance, the devices had to be capable of exerting a large side force just to move them past the raised belt lip. But forces of the magnitudes required tended to damage both the material and the belt itself.